DEHRADUN: With Prime Minister Narendra Modi scheduled to visit Kedarnath shrine in Uttarakhand on November 5, just a day after Diwali festival and a day before the closure of portals of the shrine, the preparations have started in full swing.
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said: “We are honored by the PM’s visit. All arrangements are in place, and with blessings of Baba Kedarnath, we will accomplish the dreams of development in Uttarakhand.” The PM is also scheduled to inaugurate projects worth Rs 400 crore in the state.
While the PM will perform puja in the shrine, workers of the Bharatiya Janta Party will be performing ‘Jalabhishek’ (offering of Gangajal) in Lord Shiva temples in their vicinity across the state and country, including the 11 ‘Jyotirlingas.’ BJP state secretary Kuldeep Kumar said, “On the occasion, all senior party leaders from the country and the state will join the honorable Prime Minister in the puja. Everyone will be connected virtually and perform the rituals together.”
The hill state was recently battered by heavy rains which killed 77 people. The PM’s visit is also seen as the statement by the BJP and Modi that he along with the party stands with the people of Uttarakhand.
Jay Singh Rawat, a political commentator from Dehradun said: “This is the second visit of the PM this month. Though he often visits Kedarnath, this has to be a special visit in the wake of disaster. It is to tell the people that he cares.”
The PM visited Rishikesh in Uttarakhand on October 7 where he virtually inaugurated 35 pressure swing absorption Oxygen plants across 27 states and eight union territories from All India Institute of Medical Institute, Rishikesh.